Samantha Cameron was named on an application for British citizenship made by the family’s Nepalese nanny that succeeded just a few months after the last election, No 10 said last night.

Downing Street released the information as it struggled to contain the fallout caused by a Home Office minister’s claim that the “wealthy, metropolitan elite” were fuelling migration.

James Brokenshire’s accusation has thrown the spotlight on coalition ministers, such as David Cameron and Nick Clegg, who employ foreign staff. In its efforts to fight off accusations of double standards No 10 revealed that the Camerons’ nanny was now a British